1997 Subaru Legacy — 2.2L

Federal filings for the 1997 Legacy show 146 complaints, a modest uptick from 141 in 1996 but a significant decline from the 1995 peak of 216, placing it late in an elevated-complaint cycle that began after the low-water years of 1992-1994. Yet 1997 stands out for 6 recalls and 44 TSBs—the highest recall count in the 1990-1999 window and a local high for service bulletins—while investigations fell to 1 from the 3 recorded in both 1995 and 1996. The subsequent 1998 model dropped to 124 complaints and 30 TSBs, confirming 1997 as the final year carrying the heaviest federal visibility for this model-cycle arc. Owner complaints cluster in Engine & Engine Cooling (23) and Service Brakes, Hydraulic (22), with 18 crash and 3 fire complaints also logged, though the data does not specify root causes. Because 1997 combines retreating complaint volume with the decade’s highest recall exposure and elevated service bulletins, it represents a comparatively risky purchase within this era; buyers would be better served by the lower-recall, lower-complaint 1998-1999 models that followed.